Barcelona in better shape than under Laporta, says Faus

The Catalans' vice-president announced record profits for the club on Tuesday and said the Blaugrana are in a much stronger position than they were four years ago

Barcelona vice-president Javier Faus believes the Catalan club are in much better shape than when Joan Laporta left his post in 2010.

Laporta took over in 2003 and changed Barca's fortunes on the pitch, winning 12 trophies in his seven-year tenure which made him the most successful president in the club's history.

The following administration led first by Sandro Rosell and now by Josep Maria Bartomeu, however, has always maintained that Laporta left the club in a precarious position financially.

"We are much stronger now than we were four years ago and we are much more present in different parts of the world [in terms of business and marketing]," Faus said on Tuesday.

"We have gone from debts of €62 million (on June 30, 2010) to having €50m credit. We had more debts than assets and luckily we have been able to turn that situation around and give the club the funds it deserves."

Barca's overall debt remains at €287m (down from €431m in 2010), but Faus says the club has grown faster than their rivals over the last four years and boasted record income of €530m over the last 12 months.

"We have grown faster than any club in the world," he said. "We're the only team with the potential to improve our contracts and that will allow us to strengthen our worldwide presence."